Thermal Control

In complex manufacturing equipment, thermal control is not simply the control of
temperature in the active processing area of a system – it is ensuring all the chemical precursors
and by-product reactants are addressed to ensure high-reliability performance. Our Thermal Solutions Division knows these challenges and our culture is founded on working directly
with your engineers to address your most challenging temperature management needs.

The semiconductor industry is introducing more new critical processes and precursors than ever
as the industry continues performance scaling. These more complex chemistries often require
control of multiple parameters to deliver reliable process performance, including tight thermal
management of gas distribution systems. Averaging almost 20 years of semiconductor industry
experience in thermal control and measurement, our engineers understand unique challenges in
designing for manufacture and serviceability needed to meet your repeatability and quality
requirements. This enables them to provide a high volume manufacturing solution with the
initial design.

Our engineers are supported by customized testing and characterization capabilities, which
enable complete in-house testing of all new products. Our environmentally controlled lab and
adjustable external airflow enable us to simulate customer’s enclosures. We replicate process
gases with N2 flow (heated or ambient) and measure up to 80 temperature input channels per
second. We also provide testing at customer sites (20 channel input capability).

The growth in the number of elements used in semiconductor manufacturing has resulted in a
transition in how the precursors are delivered to the process tools. For decades precursors were
delivered from remotely located bulk systems or large ampoules. Today, the high precursor cost
means you are using smaller ampoules, located at the tool. Minimizing operating costs by fully
and efficiently using the precursor is critical, and precise temperature control is central to
achieving this result.

Our ampoule heaters are custom designed, and deliver the thermal profile needed to maximize
the precursor utilization. With our streamlined and aggressive development cycle we
understand the need to provide a quick solution to meet your process development needs.

Control of post-chamber reactions has been an ongoing semiconductor industry challenge,
which has only increased with the proliferation of processes like atomic layer deposition (ALD)
and single chamber, multi-layer material etch. With higher levels of unreacted chemicals exiting
the chamber than conventional chemical vapor deposition (CVD) and etch, the risk of reaction in
the exhaust line and particle back-streaming into the chamber increases significantly. Extending
the thermal control of the system to the exhaust lines eliminates this risk.

Our custom designed exhaust heaters ensure that the thermal profile prevents deposition and
reaction along the length of the tool-based exhaust line. Fully designed, characterized and
tested within a typical four to six week period, we deliver the development timing you need.

Preventing particles and vapor phase condensation from impacting your deposition processes
requires that all segments of the gas delivery path maintain the target temperature. Our
customized Marchi thermal products address each of the critical elements in the gas delivery
path – the gas lines to and from the gas panel, the components within the gas panel, and the
process chamber elements. With a typical four-to-six week design/build cycle, including full
thermal profiling, an optimized solution will not slow your product development cycle.

The complexity of semiconductor tools is increasing, but the cadence that the industry is
working to is still defined by Moore’s law. This means your focus is on process development, and
extending your base wafer transfer platform. The increase in thermal management
requirements potentially requires the dedication of system I/O’s to perform this control.

We recognized the challenge and realize that on-tool control of gas delivery and exhaust path
heaters is often not required. Instead Marchi’s thermal temperature control solution can
localize the temperature management by integrating the controller into the power input of
heaters. This controller delivers thermocouple sensing and utilizes a solid state relay power
switching device with feedback LED. With solid state control you realize better accuracy and
increased heater lifetime, resulting in costs savings over an electromechanical control
alternative. Pass through UTA & OTA’s can be fully integrated into the controller architecture.

Precise control of wafer temperatures has been a foundational requirement of semiconductor
processing for decades. With chamber environments that are highly corrosive and wafer heating
platforms that may have multiple functions, including facilitating plasma generation in a uniform
manner, integrating temperature control can be challenging and may require the thermocouple
to be able to survive corrosive environments or to have a complex geometry.

With our beginnings as a developer of specialty, RF double shielded thermocouples, Marchi
products have proven their ability to survive in the most challenging environments. Our design
options include 300 series SST, nickel or Inconel sheath materials and titanium nitride or
alumina tip materials. Single or dual junction capability is also available. We routinely design
highly complex thermocouple geometries, addressing the need to operate in difficult
installations and high RF environments. We fully characterize and test each unit, including
temperature calibration to NIST standards.